Siege of Jaffa (1799)

The Siege of Jaffa (late March 1799) was a battle of the French Revolutionary Wars that occurred at the walled settlement of Jaffa in Palestine (now Tel Aviv-Yafo, Israel). The 1,229-strong French army of General Napoleon Bonaparte advanced north from Gaza City and besieged the major Ottoman port town of Jaffa. Napoleon decided to take Jaffa to stall the Ottoman advancement as news of the assembly of a large contingent of Turkish troops for embarkation on Rhodes reached the French; Jaffa was a wealthy center of commerce and an important military target.The French army assaulted the walls, with the French artillery opening two breaches in the walls after heavy bombardment. French troops poured through the breaches after repelling any Ottoman counterattacks from inside the fortress, and the Ottomans within the city, includign Governor Hafiz Rifat himself, fought to the death. With 70 losses, the French succeeded in overrunning Jaffa, freeing Jaffa from the tyranny of the local despot and allowing for French transport ships to have a safe haven. Napoleon compared his capture of Jaffa to the previous capture of the city by the Crusaders during the Middle Ages, and he settled in the city as he made preparations to advance on Acre to the north.